From Ms Allum

Happy 130^th Birthday to SCEGGS!

A warm welcome to all our families and staff to Term 3. I hope the break was a restorative one, whether enjoying a slower pace at home or venturing a little further afield!

Our Foundation Day Service was an uplifting start to the term. It featured the “Five Heads of SCEGGS” video series, with each segment acknowledging the influence of each of the women who have guided SCEGGS throughout our 130-year history.

Some of our Old Girls also honoured our anniversary with a reunion in London. Old Girls of all ages – whether based in the UK, Europe, or simply passing through – gathered to honour the special place SCEGGS holds in their lives. Joan Peacock from the Class of 1950 wrote to our Alumni Relations Co-ordinator Michelle Kadi saying, “I attended the reunion yesterday and really enjoyed meeting a friend of over 30 years who I met at such a reunion many years ago in London…through my life I have tried to Let my Light Shine.” It is heartwarming to hear of such enduring friendships and shared values. I hope that the spirit of a SCEGGS education — encouraging every girl to discover and develop her own unique qualities — continues to resonate with our students today.

I am also delighted to share that once again SCEGGS has been recognised as an exceptional place to work, receiving a Best Workplace Award from Xref who conducted our staff engagement survey earlier this year. One teacher reflected “The students here are a delight. Their diversity, coupled with their enthusiasm, curiosity, and warmth, makes teaching them a very rewarding experience.” Our staff are so important to us and they are instrumental to delivering the best education to our girls, to encourage them to be confident and independent thinkers.

Meanwhile, Wilkinson House continues to progress. You may enjoy seeing the installation of the fins that will form the copper roof — these prototypes are being refined by the architects and builders to ensure ventilation, light, and other key elements are just right.

There is so much to celebrate, and even more to look forward to. My very best wishes to you all for a wonderful term ahead!

Jenny Allum
Head of School

From The Chaplain

SCEGGS Monday Food Delivery Term 3

The Term 3 dates for our Monday Food Delivery can be found in the SignUp App here for those that are interested. There are a few spots still available and I would love to make sure that each week we can continue to provide nutritious and delicious meals to those that are doing it tough in our city. Every week I am meeting more and more people that have never had to ask for food before but because of the difficult circumstances with employment, rents and the rising cost of living, lots more people are seeking out welfare services just to have something to eat.  If you are not sure what this is or haven’t been involved before, go onto the App and you will find all you need there. If you have any questions, please contact me at anytime. Thanks again to everyone within our community for your continued generosity. I can assure you that every meal is very well appreciated. 

The SCEGGS Podcast “Walk The Mile” Episode 67: A Young Doctor For Young People with Ellie Cook

I have great admiration for those people that work in the medical field. We hear a lot about the difficulties that some of these professionals have to face and wonder how such an important resource can continue to sustain itself. We also observe the tragic conditions that those in places around the world that are in the midst of war or natural disaster and acknowledge the incredible stress and pressure that these people work under. This conversation is with one of our ex-students, Ellie Cook, who works in the area of pediatric oncology. Ellie talks about what drives her, what had led her into this work and the challenges that she faces. It is an area that I had no idea about but found our conversation enlightening and encouraging. I hope you do too!

And a reminder that we are published on Spotify, Apple, Google Podcast and Deezer, so you can access it easier from your preferred device. I always welcome your feedback or any ideas you may have for further episodes. You will find each podcast as they are produced in this newsletter and on the other platforms as well as our website.

Rev. Garry Lee-Lindsay
School Chaplain

Sienna Weir Prize for Poetry

Last year we were excited to invite Australian poet Jane Gibian to SCEGGS to work with a small group of Year 6 and 7 students as a part of the inaugural Sienna Weir poetry workshop and prize. The students spent a day learning about poetry, writing and drafting their own pieces while also receiving feedback from Ms Gibian. After drafting, revisions and editing, each student’s work was published by the school and considered for a Speech Night prize. 

Sienna’s parents are generously supporting this workshop again this year and we are delighted to invite Ms Gibian back in Term 3 to work with a new group of students.  Students are invited to apply for this opportunity by submitting one or two pieces of poetry to either Ms Cristi Wilsmore (Year 6 students) or Ms Jenny Bean (Year 7 students) at the email addresses below.

• Cristi Wilsmore
• Jenny Bean

Students may submit any pieces they have composed this year (including pieces they may have worked on in class or submitted for other competitions).  All entries must be submitted electronically by Friday 25 July (Week 1, Term 3). We look forward to reading the entries!

Jenny Bean
Head of English 

ySafe Parent & Carer Education invitation

You are Invited – Parent Education: Empowering Parents & Carers in the Digital Age

The Joan Freeman Carpark will open from 5.30pm

Protecting children in their digital worlds is an ever-evolving task. Now more than ever, parents and carers seek guidance in managing screen time and navigating the world of games and social media.

We are excited to support our parent community by hosting an important education session with ySafe, an Australian provider of online safety education for all families.

Here’s what you can expect from this session:

• Practical tips for online safety.
• Information on social media and gaming.
• Recommendations for screen time.
• Step-by-step guide for creating a cyber-safe home for children of all ages.

The session is suitable for all families navigating the challenges of the digital world. While the session aligns with the student sessions for Year 7 and Year 9 which will be delivered on the same day, the content is still very relevant for students in other year groups.

If you are uncertain about your child’s use of social media, you worry about the online games they play, and are concerned that your child is spending excessive time online, this workshop will help.

Please indicate your attendance by completing this form: ySafe Parent Education Session 7 August.

About ySafe

ySafe is an organisation of child psychologists, ex-police officers and teachers who specialise in cyber safety education. The goal of parent education is to share insight into the challenges and opportunities that participating in a digital environment presents to students, parents, and schools. The parent education session is designed to address the complexities of parenting in the digital age. This session will provide parents with the knowledge and tools to walk alongside children when navigating safety online. Building capacity and fostering a positive digital environment can help to empower us all to feel less overwhelmed by the challenges of the online world in which our young people find themselves immersed.

Additional Resources

Earlier this year we communicated the resources available at our SCEGGS Online Safety Hub for families and invite you again to visit the site. The Online Safety Hub is a partnership between ySafe and SCEGGS. You can access the resources and information using this link here.

Carol Bloomfield
Head of Student Wellbeing Programs

Year 6 Consent Workshops

This term, we welcome back relationship education expert, Jane McGowen, to run her Consent for Kids program with Year 6 as well as a parent information session on this important topic. Jane is a social worker and educator who has over 25 years’ experience working in the fields of trauma, sexual violence and mental health.

The parent information session will be held on Friday 8 August from 9am-10am. Parental feedback from previous years has been very positive and we hope it is impactful this year. Please RSVP your interest in attending the parent session on Friday 8 August 9am-10am via this link.

 
The student program will be delivered the day prior in workshops done in class groups held during the school day. Jane has developed the Consent for Kids program to provide earlier intervention to help resource and enhance confidence for young people with a protective behaviours lens. She uses a variety of techniques to enable young people to learn about themselves in a safe and structured way that is also fun!

Aims:

• To develop and maintain a positive self-concept
• To understand self-awareness and identify feelings and ways to manage strong emotions
• To understand early warning signs of discomfort
• Age-appropriate understandings of body autonomy, consent and body sovereignty
• Understanding personal safety issues and practising protective behaviours
• Practising confident communication
• Identify support systems
• To develop bystander awareness and peer support relationships

If you’d like to discuss any of the content prior your daughter’s involvement, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Sarah Johnstone
Deputy Head of Primary, Student Wellbeing

Primary & Secondary Music

Term 3 Event Overview

Welcome to the Term 3! Below is an overview of Music events this term – we look forward to seeing you there!

Please refer to Clipboard for information about rehearsals and performances.

Commitment to SCEGGS Co-Curricular Music

Participation in co-curricular music activities has many benefits for social and emotional wellbeing. Participation is a choice and with that choice, a high level of commitment to both rehearsals and performances is expected. Relationships, musicianship, and teamwork can only be developed when members of the ensemble are committed to rehearsals and performances. We expect full commitment to all co-curricular music activities at SCEGGS. Students should be respectful of the impact that any absence has on their ensemble: their peers, their conductor, and the reputation of the school.

Students are expected to be fully committed and attend all scheduled rehearsals and performances.

All absences must be communicated to the Music Department using the following guidelines:

• Parents and guardians are to request written permission for leave from Ms Jones, Head of Music Co-Curricular (Primary & Secondary parents) at least two weeks in advance of a performance if they are unable to attend.
• If a student is sick on a performance day, a parent/guardian must email or message the Music Department (Administrator or Ensemble Director), or Head of Music Co-Curricular, explaining the absence as soon as possible.
• If a student is unable to attend a rehearsal, the student, or a parent, is to notify the relevant Ensemble Conductor or Ensemble Director.
• In case of a clash with school co-curricular activities eg Sports Trials, Duke of Ed Hike, the student is to liaise with both Co-ordinators to negotiate an acceptable outcome.

Failure to adhere to the above guidelines in the secondary school will result in:

• A detention for any unexplained absences from a performance.
• A penalty point for any unexplained absence from  rehearsal.
• A penalty point for late arrival to more than two rehearsals or performances in the same term.

A student being ineligible for House points and recognition on school reports if their attendance is deemed unsatisfactory.

Music Department Contacts

Australian National Piano Competition for Children

Olivia Yan (Year 2) has recently won first place in the Australian National Piano Competition for Children (ANPCC), which was held in Brisbane from 10 July – 13 July. 

This prestigious competition, held every two years, is one of the most significant events for young pianists in Australia and New Zealand. This year’s event included three intense rounds of performances, attracting 88 talented young pianists from across the region. After a highly competitive selection process, 28 finalists were invited to Brisbane to compete in the final round. We are proud to share that Olivia emerged as the overall winner in her age group.

Beyond the Green Gate

We love hearing about ways our musicians are involved in music-making outside of school. Please send details to Heidi Jones.

Clipboard

All co-curricular music ensemble schedules are now available on Clipboard. If you haven’t set this up yet, please follow the provided instructions. For any issues with Clipboard set-up, contact our Music Administration Assistant, Miss Alice Kotowicz

Heidi Jones
Head of Music (Co-curricular)

Primary Sport News

Interschools Snowsports Championships

The Interschools Snowsports Sydney Championships, Redlands Cup, and Scots Cup took place during the term break. Interschools ran from 15 to 18 July at Thredbo. We had 25 girls attend from Years 1 to 6. A special mention to our youngest competitor Zoe Rogers in Year 1 who competed in Division 6 Ski Cross and Alpine events. There were some excellent performances across all divisions, with girls trialling events for the first time and others excelling in their respective disciplines. A big shout to Dasha Jolley and Clementine Finlayson (Year 6) for their efforts in navigating a challenging Snowboard Cross course.

Congratulations to all competitors. It was wonderful to see you in action and representing the school so proudly. All the best to those who qualified for state which will take place from the 18 August to 22 August at Perisher.  

A special thank you to Ms Smith and Ms Axford who also joined us in supporting the team and spent hours undertaking race official duties.

There were so many highlights of the week, however, it is difficult to go past Dasha Jolley achieving a gold medal in Snowboard Cross Division 4. Also, congratulations to both Alpine Division 4 and 6 teams who both placed 5^th overall in their respective divisions. Our top individual results were:

NSW Equestrian Interschools Championships

Over the break, the NSW Equestrian Interschools Championships were held and some of the SCEGGS competitors achieved outstanding results. Two notable mentions include Alessandra Voitenko Turner (Year 6) who is the new 2025 State Interschools Champion in the Combined 80cm class, scoring first in Dressage and Showjumping in the 80cm combined training class division. Alessandra will now go on to compete at the National Interschool Competition in September. Georgina Sharp (Year 5) was Primary Champion for the show horse category. Congratulations to all SCEGGS girls for their efforts and results!

Term 3 Sport

Please check the following dates, times and venues for all Term 3 Sports. For more information click here.

Important Sports Dates

Primary Sport Achievements

Does your daughter compete in any sport outside of school (for example, at a representative level or a sport we do not currently offer)? If so, I would love to celebrate their achievements by recognising them in this newsletter!

Please email any information (and photos, if possible) to Adrian Hammond. These will be included in newsletters throughout the year.

or any questions or issues, please email Adrian Hammond  and the SCEGGS Sport Department.

Have a wonderful week!

Mr Adrian Hammond
Primary Sports Coordinator

Secondary Sports News

Welcome

Welcome back to Term 3. We look forward to another busy term. Training for all team sports has started, with matches commencing this weekend. Please check Clipboard for all training commitments and fixtures as they are uploaded this week. All skill based and other sporting activities will commence from next Monday.

Athletics

Congratulations to Coco Espie (Year 11) who has been selected to represent Australia at the World Para Athletics Championships to be held in New Delhi, India in September. Coco will compete in the 100m, 400m & 800m events.

Cross Country

The NSW All Schools Cross Country Championships were held on Tuesday. Well done to our SCEGGS girls who achieved some outstanding results:

Well done also to Ruby Fry who won the gold medal at the Sydney 10 in the U20 age group!

Football

Well done to the following SCEGGS students who represented Easts FC in the Kanga Cup that was held in Canberra last week: Louisa Brooks (Year 8), Macy Barnett (Year 8), Tully Greiner-Sharp (Year 7) and Diya Shankar (Year 7). They faced some tough competition on their way to reaching the Semi Finals.

SCEGGS at Play

Do you have any sporting news or photos to share in the Green Gate?

We love seeing our students being active and want to celebrate their passion and enjoyment amongst the SCEGGS community. Please send in any action shots from the weekend and any other interesting sporting highlights to Alison Gowan.

SCEGGS Training sessions before and after school plus Saturday Sport

Any cancellations or adjustments will be made in Clipboard and families will receive a notification or email when changes are made. Please ensure you have notifications enabled.

All Clipboard notifications will now come through the SCEGGS Mobile App too, so if you have been receiving notifications from Clipboard (eg when sport is cancelled due to wet weather), you will need to download the SCEGGS Mobile App to ensure that you continue to receive these push notifications.

IGSA Fixtures, Results and Wet Weather

The IGSA website and platform for accessing wet weather, fixtures and team results can be found here.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact myself on 9052 2721 or 0418 491 521.

Alison Gowan
Director of Sport

B Kinder Day

The final day of Term 2 saw the Primary School come alive with warmth and positivity as students from Kindergarten to Year 6 took part in B Kinder Day, a dedicated focus day that shone a spotlight on the power of kindness in all its forms.

Classrooms transformed into kindness hubs as girls created heartfelt paper chain pledges with each link representing a promise to spread kindness in their homes, school, environment and community. From offering help to classmates to standing up for fairness, these chains became symbols of generosity and empathy. Other activities focused on self-compassion where students explored the idea that being kind starts from within.

A highlight of the day for Kindergarten to Year 3 was a visit from clinical psychologist and author, Dr Marcelle Moore, who shared her empowering book, Even Lions Get Scared. Through engaging storytelling and discussion, she helped students understand that everyone, no matter how brave, can experience the ‘wobbles’. And that feeling scared or anxious sometimes is normal! If you are interested in learning more about Marcelle’s book please visit her website here.

Years 4 to 6 students took a closer look at what it means to be body kind. Through thought-provoking conversations and activities from the Butterfly Foundation, the girls unpacked how to develop a healthy relationship with their bodies, celebrating function, uniqueness and resilience over appearance.

B Kinder Day concluded with a joyful K–6 Assembly led by the Kindness Committee, where students shared reflections, showcased their pledges and celebrated the day’s learnings. An encore performance of Hope is a Thing with Feathers by the Years 3 to 6 Choir was also a lovely addition.

Throughout the day our students learned that kindness has no age limit and when nurtured, it can create a ripple of change. The positive feeling in the school was infectious and made for a very uplifting end to the term.

Sarah Johnstone
Deputy Head of Primary, Student Wellbeing

P&F Primary School Discos

SCEGGS P&F ‘Enchanted Forest’ Primary School Discos

The SCEGGS P&F ‘Enchanted Forest’ Primary Discos will be held on Friday 1 August in the Great Hall. By now you should have received an email with all event details, including a reminder for girls to bring their own water bottle, and the TryBooking link for ticket purchases. Bookings will close at 5pm on Friday 25 July.

The JF car park will be open to parents to facilitate a safe and efficient collection of the students. All girls will be dismissed at designated locations on St Peter’s Street. Parents who have more than one daughter to collect are encouraged to collect their youngest first.

Dismissal arrangements

Kindergarten to Year 3

Please collect your daughter when the event concludes at 5pm:

We kindly request that parents clear the car park by 5.30pm to accommodate the next event.

Years 4 to 6

Please collect your daughter when the event concludes at 7.30pm:

Please note the car park will close promptly at 8pm.

If you have any questions regarding the organisation of the evening, please feel free to contact me.

Gabriela Grocott
Manager of Primary Administration and Operations

School TV: Social Media & Comparison Culture

With the Albanese government’s social media ban for young people under the age of 16 due to come into effect in December this year, it is timely to start to reflect and start a conversation on how social media and comparison culture features in your daughter’s life.

Young people today are growing up in a world where exposure to other people’s lives is constant. Through social media and other platforms, they are regularly presented with curated highlights – from flawless holiday photos and academic milestones to the latest fashion trends and fitness achievements. This continuous stream of idealised content fuels what is known as comparison culture, where self-worth is often measured by how someone stacks up against others (School TV).

Recent research by the Australian Catholic University, which analysed 117 studies covering 292,000 children globally, revealed excessive screen time was increasing children’s chances of developing social and emotional problems (Australian Psychology Society Article, published June 2025). This is probably no surprise to parents and educators, as many see first-hand the link between screen time and a deterioration in behaviour, interaction or mood.

Whilst comparison culture is a normal part of adolescent development, for children and adolescents, who are still figuring out who they are, comparison culture in an online space can be particularly damaging. Constantly comparing their appearance, achievements, or social standing to friend’s posts, influencers, and even strangers can lead to unrealistic expectations and a skewed sense of self-worth. This relentless need to measure up can contribute to feelings of inadequacy, self-doubt, and anxiety – undermining both confidence and emotional wellbeing (School TV).

The good news is, families have a powerful role to play in helping young people navigate these challenges and can help redirect normal adolescent learning through comparison to building real world role models and connections in their community.

For more information on comparison culture and what parents can do see schools TV special report here.

For an accessible exploration of social media and comparison culture plus other common challenges facing parents of today, the recent ABC series “The Role of a Lifetime” is well worth a watch. For more information on this series see this link.

For more details on the article mentioned see this link.

Melissa Saxton
SCEGGS School Counsellor 

Careers Corner

Careers Corner Newsletter

Please click here to view the latest issue of the Careers Corner Newsletter.

Andrea Pinnock
Careers Advisor